Zaarly, the local custom commerce company, is releasing the most significant update of its short existence today. Originally conceived as a “want engine” that allows buyers to order customized services or products from local artisans, Zaarly is adding Storefronts to showcase the most outstanding sellers and offers.

Zaarly Anywhere, meet Ubokia Everywhere.
Ubokia, the reverse Craigslist where buyers tell sellers what they want, is releasing new capability called Ubokia Everywhere, which will enable any site on the internet to create its own unique marketplace of wants.
And the new update seems to be a direct response to sort-of-kind-of competitor Zaarly.

Zaarly, the online marketplace where users find and hire talented local builders and artisans, is announcing a new “Zaarly Anywhere” initiative that allows any site to enable offline commerce from online content.

Just a few short days ago, The Fancy added social commerce to its Pinterest-like discovery and sharing service. Today, the fast-moving startup added local commerce via Zaarly’s peer-to-peer marketplace.

It seems like every company, every article, and every startup CEO today proclaims that the workforce is changing, and the need to be in the same physical space no longer exists. Sure, we’d all like to think it is. Heck, I spent years building software and finding tools to help me work remotely, saying, “We don’t need an office space.” I was wrong.

With online bulletin-board Craigslist seemingly ignoring mobile entirely, the race is on for someone to offer the first great mobile marketplace. One contender is Grabio, which initially started out as a consumer to consumer marketplace, but is now seeking out local businesses to flesh out its ecosystem.

With the rise of mobile marketplaces, outsourcing tedious or mundane tasks to a willing gopher has never been easier. Thursday, one startup seeks to make these mobile conveniences less intimidating for the masses.

Mobile marketplace Zaarly announced today that Hewlett-Packard chief executive Meg Whitman is joining its board of directors, and that it’s getting a $14 million investment led by Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers.